Advertising and marketing often represents a significant on-going expense for businesses, i.e., sellers and/or providers of consumer goods, products, and/or services. Consequently, both business owners/managers and providers of marketing and advertising tools are constantly looking for new ways to provide relevant marketing offers to potential customers, i.e., consumers. In addition, consumers typically want to receive information regarding marketing offers that are of relevance to the consumer. However, consumers are also typically equally interested in not receiving information regarding irrelevant marketing offers, or, worse yet, being flooded with information regarding irrelevant marketing offers.
Traditionally, marketing offers, such as coupons, sale prices, discount offers, specific price guarantees, bundles of offers, etc. were distributed in “hard-copy”, typically printed, form by various means. More recently, electronic formats for marketing offers have been adopted.
Typically, electronic marketing offers are distributed via networks of computing systems, including public networks such as the Internet and/or; via web-sites; e-mail; cable television, satellite television, and/or “on demand” television services; electronic attachments to transactional data, such as, but not limited to, transactional data from and/or displayed by, banks, credit card companies, and other financial institutions; and/or by various other, largely Internet dependent, methods and/or mechanisms for distributing an electronic marketing offer.
In addition, as the information age, and information searching/sharing capabilities, have evolved, more and more consumers, and businesses, have come to rely on Internet-based interactive electronic marketing offer search and distribution means. Internet-based interactive electronic marketing offer search and distribution means typically require Internet access, whereby a user/consumer, submits various search information and/or parameters, such as the type of product and/or service being sought, specific brands and/or model numbers desired, dimensions and/or parameters and/or features of interest, etc., through one or more Internet connected computing systems. Then, using the submitted search parameters, a search is made for electronic marketing offers in one more databases and networks, such as websites and the Internet. Typically, the user/consumer is then provided with the search results, often including multiple electronic marketing offers and/or hyperlinks; also typically via the Internet and one or more Internet connected computing systems.
In areas of the world where there Internet access, and Internet connected computing systems, are readily available, current Internet-based interactive electronic marketing offer search and distribution means have proven highly effective and are very popular with both businesses and users/consumers. However, extensive studies among consumers in emerging economies, and, in particular, India, have shown that consumers there have considerable difficulty obtaining relevant electronic marketing offers.
Currently, this problem is largely attributable to a lack of network infrastructure, and, in particular, very limited access to both the Internet and Internet connected computing systems. Of course, this is often particularly true in more rural areas. In short, for many consumers in areas of the world having emerging economies, reliable access to the Internet, and Internet connected computing systems, is not a reality. Consequently, currently, the highly effective and popular Internet-based interactive electronic marketing offer search and distribution means discussed above are largely not available to many consumers in these areas of the world.
However, in contrast to traditional Internet access, and Internet connected computing systems, mobile phones, and mobile communication technologies, are widely available, readily accessible, and generally affordable in most areas with emerging economies. Consequently, in many areas with emerging economies, mobile phones, and mobile communication technology, is currently available to, and used by, a much larger set of consumers than traditional Internet connected computing systems, or the Internet. Consequently, currently, mobile phones, and mobile communication technology, have the potential, at least in theory, to provide consumers at least some access to electronic marketing offers. However, this potential is currently largely thwarted by the fact that mobile phone technology relies on Short Message Service (SMS) protocols and architectures.
SMS is the text communication service component of phone, web, or mobile communication systems. SMS uses relatively ridged standardized communications protocols that allow the exchange of only very short text messages between fixed line or mobile phone devices. Currently, SMS text messaging is the most widely used data application in the world, with 2.4 billion active users, or 74% of all mobile phone subscribers. However, due to the current limits on the size of messages, and very simple/lightweight user interfaces (U/Is) associated with mobile phones and SMS, SMS, as currently implemented, does not readily, easily, or efficiently, lend itself to being used as an interactive electronic marketing offer search and distribution means. Consequently, currently, electronic marketing offers sent via SMS are typically limited to one-way blast SMS messages that are often not desired by the receiver and are not interactive, or in any real way, customized/tailored to the consumer/user receiving the message. As a result, current blast SMS message based electronic marketing offers are often considered an annoyance, to be largely ignored, by the receiving consumer/user.
In light of the situation described above, even though, in terms of access and availability, SMS is the best communication channel for many parts of the world, the severe limitations of SMS communication channels and the SMS protocols, has historically prevented SMS channels from being used as an interactive electronic marketing offer search and distribution means. As a result, currently, many consumers in areas of the world having emerging economies are denied the full benefits of the information age and the benefits of interactive electronic marketing offer search and/or distribution.